Chapter 9 Damar Scott
DAMAR SCOTT
AS MIA AND I struggled violently over her phone, her voice rose to an ear-splitting level as she yelled accusations and threats at me.
My patience was gone and had been replaced by a fury that pushed me toward the edge.
Listening to her threaten to shatter the careful world I’d built made me see red.
She was serious this time. I could see the reckless fire in her eyes that told me if I didn’t do something immediately, she’d ruin everything. I wasn’t about to let Mia tear my world apart, not when I’d sacrificed so much to keep Aviana exactly where she belonged.
“Nigga, I’m telling her everything. It was supposed to be me, you, and our baby. Avi deserves to know. You can’t keep hiding me and my baby.”
I knew that Mia hoped that the reminder that she was carrying my child would soften me, but it had done the opposite.
Suddenly, my anger turned violent. My fist collided with her temple, and pain exploded behind her eyes.
She looked as if the world had spun around her.
Her grip on the phone loosened, and she blinked as if her vision was blurred.
She fought to stay conscious, but I watched as the darkness closed in on her.
She slumped to the floor as she passed out from the knockout.
Panic consumed me, pushing me into a rage that was manic.
More than my fear of her telling my wife everything, I knew that Mia was so pissed that she would tell the Feds of my involvement with the embezzlement.
I couldn’t afford to let her reveal everything to Aviana or the Feds.
I was desperate and thinking irrationally.
I needed to silence her and to keep my secrets buried.
My initial efforts to try to silence her had failed.
Two weeks ago, I had come up with the plan to make an anonymous tip to the twins at Dream Realty.
Considering how much money she’d stolen, there was no way that she would avoid prison time.
I hoped that once Mia was arrested, she would be so in love with me that she would never turn me in.
But then we found out that she was pregnant.
She was even more determined for us to be together then.
She thought we were Bonnie and Clyde, but I didn’t want to lose Aviana, so I made the anonymous tip.
I hoped that once Mia was arrested, she would want to terminate the pregnancy, but she only became more determined than ever.
I dropped to my knees beside her. Her body was limp and unconscious.
Desperate, I gripped her neck with my hands.
My fingers tightened around her throat. Her skin was warm, but I could already sense her life slipping away.
The choking sounds that escaped her lips were the only indication that she was still alive.
I squeezed harder with desperation driving me.
Her breathing grew more ragged.
Then it stopped altogether.
My heart drummed in my chest as I realized I had actually done it. But I couldn’t deny the relief I felt. Still, I was shook that I had actually taken a life.
I was still shaking as I stood up. Panicked, I rushed into the bedroom nearby. The only sound in the condo was my unnerved breathing and rushed footsteps. I dragged the large suitcase from the corner of the room and into the living room.
As I stood over her body, I crouched down to ensure that she was in fact dead.
Checking her pulse, I confirmed that she was no longer alive.
With trembling hands, I lifted her into the suitcase.
The sound of her bones cracking as I contorted her body to fit inside was sickening.
I gagged, fighting to keep the contents of my stomach inside.
The suitcase seemed too small, but I forced her in.
I struggled with the zipper. I had to sit on it to get it closed.
When I finally did, I stood there, breathless and horrified at what I had just done.
I started to question my own sanity. Staring at the suitcase, I knew I had to get rid of it and make sure that no one ever found out what had happened here.
My hands were slick with sweat. My mind raced as I tried to figure out my next move.
I wrestled with the suitcase as I drug it out of the condo. Every creak of the suitcase sounded so loud in the silent hallway.
When I reached the elevator, I was already sweating. The metal doors slid open. I was so lost in my own head that I didn’t realize I wasn’t alone until I saw Paul step in behind me. He was an older black guy who lived down the hall. We’d exchanged a few words before, but never anything more.
I tensed up as the elevator door closed behind us. I tried to maintain a casual demeanor, nodding my head in greeting. “What up, Paul?”
“How you doin’, Damar?” He looked at me with kind, but curious eyes. “How’s everything going?”
My throat was dry, and I struggled to keep my voice steady. “Good as they can be.”
Paul’s gaze lingered a moment too long, and he frowned slightly. “You sure you’re okay? You look a bit off.”
I forced a tight-lipped smile. “I’m fine. It’s just been a long-ass day.”
He chuckled sarcastically. “I’ve had plenty of those, and you’ll have plenty more.”
I scoffed at the irony.
The elevator descended slowly, each floor feeling like an eternity. I could feel Paul’s concerned eyes on me. I shifted from foot to foot, trying to distract myself, but the feeling of the suitcase handle in my hand felt like a lead anchor around my legs.
Finally, the elevator came to a stop at the lobby. “Well, this is my stop.” I tried to sound casual as I drug the suitcase toward the opening doors. “Have a good night.”
Paul nodded, but his concerned eyes remained fixed on me. “You sure you’re all right?”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” I insisted.
I rushed out of the elevator and headed toward the parking garage.
I didn’t look back as I hustled toward my car.
An hour later, I was quietly slipping into bed with Avi.
She was sound asleep. Her gentle snores interrupted the quiet of the room. Her peaceful face was framed by a loose strand of hair that fell over her cheek.
I was jealous of how content she looked. There was no way that I could get any sleep. My thoughts were all over the place.
I was confident that no cameras had caught a glimpse of Mia coming or me leaving.
The condo Mia had gotten for us was an older building on the east side near the lake.
It was a place that was perfect for our little secret because it had no cameras in the lobby and the neighbor across the hall didn’t have a Ring camera, nor did we.
I pulled the sheets back gently, not wanting to disturb Aviana, and slid in beside her. She stirred slightly but settled back into a deeper sleep.
As I lay there, my mind was anything but at ease. My thoughts drifted to Mia’s lifeless body, now hidden in the trunk of my car, still in the suitcase. The image of her stiffening form filled me with a cold dread. I needed to figure out how to get rid of her for good without leaving any trace.
I tried to sleep, but that was impossible, so I just lay there for hours, figuring out the perfect way to make all of this go away. When I finally did, I slipped out of bed before the first light of dawn.
The drive to the lake was a blur. The city was still, and early morning fog made it look ghostly.
When I reached the pier, I parked.
Taking the suitcase out of the car was just as hard as it had been putting it in. The dead weight was heavier than I ever could have imagined.
The silhouette of my boat was dark against the pale morning sky.
I loaded the suitcase onboard and drove out onto the lake.
Once I found a spot far out, I secured an anchor to the suitcase.
With a quick glance around to ensure no one was watching, I heaved the suitcase overboard.
I watched as it sank, feeling my stomach churn as I realized I could never go back from here.
Returning to shore, I pulled Mia’s phone from my pocket. I began typing threatening messages to Aviana, pretending to be Mia. I figured this was an additional way to cover my bullshit so that none of this ever came back to me.
Days passed in a haze of deceit. I made Aviana’s life hell, all while pretending to be Mia. I thought that as long as everyone thought that Mia was still alive, it would be harder to prove that I had killed her if her body was ever found.
The threating text messages were just the beginning.
I had convinced one of my other side pieces, Marlene, to go by Avi’s parents’ house in Mia’s car and blow up Avi’s car, then I had convinced her to go into my and Aviana’s home and set it on fire.
She was built a lot like Mia, so I knew that Aviana would automatically assume it was her when she saw her on camera.
I was surprised at how far I was willing to go, but I couldn’t stop. I was driven by this warped need to stay in control and to keep my secrets buried so that I never lost Aviana.
I had one more loose end to tie up. The sun was starting to come up as I parked a block away from Marlene’s crib. She danced late at a strip club, so I knew she’d just gotten home a few hours ago. By now, she’d be passed out.
Marlene was always about her bread. That’s all she cared about.
So, when I offered her some money to torch Avi’s whip and burn down our house, she was game.
But, in case she ever grew a conscious or if Mia’s body was ever found, I didn’t trust her to remain loyal to a nigga who would only have sex with her after the club and wouldn’t even take her on a real date.
I pulled my hoodie low over my head and slipped around the back of her place. The back window was always cracked open because the latch was broken. She had fussed a few times about her landlord not getting it fixed. I eased it up slow and climbed in carefully.
I crept down the hallway with my gun gripped tight in my hand.
I stepped carefully past piles of laundry and heels tossed around the floor.
Her bedroom door was open just enough for me to slip inside without touching it.
She was sprawled out, face-down, barely covered by her sheets.
I raised the gun, aimed, and squeezed the trigger.
The blast was louder than I expected, but she didn’t even have a chance to flinch.
I stepped toward Marlene’s body. Standing over her, I leaned closer to make sure she wasn’t breathing.
Blood seeped steadily from the hole in her head.
Bits of brain matter were splattered across the pillow.
Her chest shuddered a few more times, but each breath was weaker than the last, until she finally went still.
I watched closely, making sure she was gone before I stepped back, satisfied.
Being a stripper, she had plenty of thirsty dudes running in and out of her place all the time. I knew once the cops found her body, the suspect list would be endless. She would be just another dancer caught up in some bullshit. The police would brush off her murder and soon forget about her case.
Before I dipped out, I went straight to the spot I knew she stashed her cash. I opened her top drawer and grabbed the thick stack of bills inside to make it look like some desperate dude from the club came through, shot her, and robbed her.
I slipped out of her place just as quietly as I’d come in. Pulling my hoodie lower, I walked quickly toward my car.